Greg Baeker

PhD.
Director, Cultural Development

t. +416.367.3535 / 228
e. gbaeker@millierdickinsonblais.com

Greg Baeker is one of Canada’s leading thinkers and practitioners in cultural planning, with over 35 years of experience in the field. Greg is the founder of AuthentiCity, now a Division of Millier Dickinson Blais.

Greg began his career in the museum and heritage field serving as Executive Director of the Ontario Museum Association and Executive Coordinator of the Ontario Heritage Policy Review for the Government of Ontario, the first cross-government heritage policy in Canada.

Greg and AuthentiCity pioneered the introduction of municipal cultural planning and cultural mapping concepts and practices in Ontario beginning in 2005. Since that time AuthentiCity has completed more than 15 municipal cultural plans in communities of all sizes in Ontario and other parts of Canada; many are now recognized as best practices. These range from large urban centres such as Toronto – he is co-author with Glen Murray and Pauline Couture of the Creative City Planning Framework for the City of Toronto –  to small rural areas – his Cultural Strategic Plan for Prince Edward County in Ontario won an award from the Economic Developers Council of Ontario in 2006.

AuthentiCity has also pioneered the development of cultural mapping frameworks and methodologies that have been implemented in a range of municipalities in Ontario and other parts of Canada.

Greg is a sought-after speaker at conferences and publishes regularly for journals such as Municipal World. In 2010 Municipal World published Rediscovering the Wealth of Places: A Municipal Cultural Planning Handbook for Canadian Communities that is receiving acclaim across Canada and internationally.

Among his past volunteer commitments are: Founding Board Member, Arts Consultants Canada: Member, Sectoral Commission on Culture, Communications and Information, Canadian Commission for UNESCO; Founding Board Member, Canadian Cultural Research Network; Chair, Canadian Museums Human Resource Strategy.

Greg has a Masters in Museum Studies from the University of Toronto and a PhD in Urban and Regional Planning from the University of Waterloo. He lives in Toronto.